About Us


The Rozmberk Society is a registered, not-for-profit, non-governmental "Public Benefit Corporation" (in Czech: obecne prospesna spolecnost or o.p.s.) under Czech law. Internationally, the Society is classified as a Non-US equivalent of a US charity with 501 (c) (3) status (tax exempt, donations are tax-deductible).  

The mission of the Society is the conservation of natural and cultural heritage combined with a sustainable regional development. Our operating area is South Bohemia, Czech Republic, and in particular the eastern part comprising the Micro-Region Ruze and the Trebon Biosphere Reserve. To help achieve our objectives, promoting sustainable economic development in rural areas, creating new jobs, involvement of the local inhabitants, and increasing public awareness are paramount in all our activities.

The Ecomuseum Ruze is an initiative of the Rozmberk Society in collaborating with several local and regional partners, in particular the Association Microregion Ruze and the Trebon Biosphere Reserve and Protected Landscape Administration .

The idea for establishing the ecomuseum came through the initiative of the Polish Environmental Partnership Foundation to introduce the eco-museum concept as grassroots initiative in places of high natural and cultural values. It was organized under the auspices of the International Visegrad Fund in the framework of a project called “Establishing a Visegrad network of “Eco-museums” for restoring and maintaining living heritage at the local level in Central Europe”

As long-time partner of the Czech Environmental Partnership Foundation, the Rozmberk Society submitted a proposal and was elected to start develop the ecomuseum concept in South Bohemia. Since that time, the Society has been involved in further developing the ecomuseum concept both in the region and also in a wider European collaboration working for a European Network of Ecomuseums.


Additional information

More information about the Society and its partners can be found at the English website of the Rozmberk Society and the mainly Czech websites of the Society's partners.

Rozmberk Society Our English website with project and organization details.

Association Microregion Ruze An association of several villages and small towns and a few non-profit and for-profit organizations. Such associations have been established throughout the Czech Republic and elsewhere as a fund raising and collaboration strategy for regional development projects in rural areas.

Trebon Biosphere Reserve and Protected Landscape Area Administration. The"Sprava CHKO Trebonsko" is the administration responsible for the TBR&PLA. The Trebon Biosphere Reserve is an international classification of the area as a Biosphere Reserve within the UNSECO Man and Biosphere program. The same area is also classified as a Protected Landscape Area under Czech Law. The area is one of the very few completely human-designed and dominated areas to receive such a classification. During their on average 3 to 5 centuries-long existence, the many fishponds, which make up 10% of the area, have developed into semi-natural shallow lakes are now also protected under the Ramsar Wetland Convention. The area has a very high biodiversity and is a save-heaven and refuge for numerous protected and endangered species.